Any chance the filter is clogged?

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How does Danny Hart sit down with balls that big?

The filter is not clogged but even if it was, I figured the bypass setting should have made that irrelevant.

It is confounding.

I don't have a suggestion, but I'm wondering why you are trying to fix this and not asking to owner to deal with it. If I owned a property that I rented out I'm not sure I'd be very happy about my renter/tenant messing around with the mechanical systems. Just my $.02.

Owner is a friend. He is not handy. Plumbers, etc. take a long time to get up here, so owner is happy for me to fix what I can and save him some bucks - and so that we can actually enjoy normal water flow for the week or so before a plumber gets here.

Ever think it may be the pump? Maybe if it runs too long it overheats and shuts itself off. Then cools down and comes back on. I've seen this happen with swimming pools pumps. Since it only happens on longer cycles, maybe something to look into.

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Pink? Maybe. Maybe not. You decide.

The bypass may have too small an orifice for full flow. Try putting in a 20 micron filter Instead of the 5 it likely has. Too fine of a filter may be causing back pressure.

Thanks for the suggestions. Will check both.

The impellers on pumps wear down as they age (mostly from grit in the water), causing the pump to have to work harder for the same lift and flow. Eventually, they have to run continuously to pressurize the tank and they'll overheat periodically while doing so.

My guess is that the pump is periodically going into thermal shutdown because it is worn and having to work too hard. It may be time for a new pump (or at least a new impeller if the pump is serviceable). You can test this by feeling if the motor is hot to the touch when it shuts down.

In the mean time, it might help if you reduce the cutoff pressure on the sensor. This will reduce your water pressure and flow a bit, but will make it easier for the pump to do its work.


EDIT: Also check the air pressure in the tank. Assuming it is a bladder tank, the air pressure while empty should be 2 psi below the cut-in water pressure. If any water comes out of the air valve, the bladder has ruptured and the tank needs to be replaced.

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"100% of the people who confuse correlation and causation end up dying."